This invention relates to seat headrest arrangements and methods of utilization thereof.
Headrests are known in the vehicle seating art. Examples of vehicle seat headrests are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,822,102 issued to Duvenkamp, U.S. Pat. No. 4,762,367 issued to Denton, International Application Number PCT/SE97/01487 (International Publication Number WO 98/09838), and International Application Number PCT/NO97/00271 (International Publication Number WO 98/16406). The present invention provides a vehicle seat headrest arrangement which provides an alternative to the aforementioned patents with special unique advantages to be explained later herein.
Under the invention, a vehicle seat and headrest arrangement includes a seatback frame and a headrest having a cushion portion and an impact target pivotally associated with the seatback frame. A rearward force acting upon the impact target causes the cushion portion to rotate forwardly. A spring operatively associated with he headrest and the seatback frame biases the headrest against pivotal movement. The arrangement further includes a damper operatively associated with the headrest and the seatback frame.
With such an arrangement, the damper retards return movement of the headrest caused by the spring. Advantageously, the damper significantly decrease back driving of the cushion portion that may be caused by the head of an occupant during a rear collision.
According to a feature of the invention, the spring and the damper may be coaxially aligned with each other. Furthermore, the cushion portion may be configured to absorb energy.